Online Fitness Ireland

Hi Everyone,

I finished Week 6 of my Post-Pregnancy Plan on the 23rd of December but due to the madness of Christmas and Frankie having the chicken pox for the first week of the New Year I’m only getting to sit down and do a proper post about it today (Jan 9th!). Since I finished the plan it has been launched and is now available to join along with my 6-week Online Slim-down which I’ve started myself this week. I’m helping a fabulous group of women to improve their health and fitness and I’d love for more of you to join us. For more details about both courses head over here.

Always room for Christmas Eve treats

My babies in their Christmas finery

The Results

Week 1 vs Week 6

Week 1 Start

Week 6 End

Arm

9.5"

9.5"

Boobs

35"

35"

Waist

29"

28"

Bellybutton

32"

30"

Hips / Bum

36.5"

37"

Thigh

20.5"

20"

Considering I took on this challenge two weeks after Jodie was born when we were still in the midst of sleepless mayhem I’m delighted with my results. It was also during the build up to Christmas so there was plenty of temptation in my way!

As I explained in my blog post from Week 1 I hadn’t a lot of excess body fat to lose after I had her owing to the fact that I kept up a good level of exercise and ate a fairly balanced diet throughout my pregnancy. I did have a good bit around my stomach and lower back though and I’ve definitely lost a lot of it from there. I have a bit to go but I had been warned by other mothers that it’s a little slower to go off this area the second time around. I’m confident that I’ll be rid of it after a few more weeks though.

What I was mostly concerned with was improving my posture and increasing my strength and I’m delighted with the progress I’ve made in this area. My core muscles are so much stronger and I’m starting to see definition in my stomach muscles similar to what it was pre-pregnancy. The core exercises in the plan start off very gently as obviously the muscles can be quite weak post-pregnancy but after week 3 they get a bit tougher and that’s when I really started to notice things improving.

One of my main aims was to build up my bum again as it goes really flat after pregnancy. I’ve seen a big improvement (and am delighted to see an increase in the measurement here, not a decrease!) and will definitely continue to work on it.

While it’s not an area of the body most people would be too bothered about my upper back and shoulders were a big concern to me. They come under serious pressure when holding baby to feed. I had a shoulder injury after having Frankie and it began to niggle again this time but between the strengthening exercise, the post-workout stretches and some muscle therapy I’ve managed to stay pain free for the most part.

The Exercise

In the beginning I found it hard to get used to the slower pace of the workouts as I’m used to pushing myself but I was conscious that my body wasn’t ready to be pushed too hard and so it was exactly what was needed. Each week as the pace increased I looked forward to the extra challenge. In the first two weeks I walked a lot with the double buggy as well as doing the workout videos but when the weather turned bad I was so glad to have the videos to do at home while Frankie was in TV land.

The Meal Plans

A typical tastey dinner

Snacks at the ready

Once I stayed organised with the meal plans I was fine. I would do my Tesco online shopping on a Wednesday eve, have it delivered Friday morning and then do some food preparation on Sunday for the next week. The only week it didn’t go well was when we were all sick with coughs and colds. I had to just wing it that week but it was fine and doesn’t seem to have made a huge difference. There’s plenty of wiggle room built in to the plan anyway. I also found that because I was in the early days of breastfeeding I had to add in extra snacks some days and particularly at night but again that’s something I advise as part of the plan as every woman’s body is different.

The Support

Our private Facebook support group to stay connected and motivated

Those who join the plan are invited to join a private Facebook support group. Obviously I didn’t have this element myself but I got so much lovely support and feedback from people on Snapchat that it felt like I did. I snapped if I was working out and also a lot of my meals and snacks and got so many snaps from other new mothers and women in general telling me that I was inspiring them to get up and go or make changes to their diet.

Like I said in the beginning I was really glad that I got to trial this plan before it went out to the general public. There were one or two things in the meal plan that I changed because when it came to making them I realised that they were too complicated and that if I hadn’t time to do them then others wouldn’t either. I’m so happy with the progress I’ve made and I’m delighted that I’m going to be able to help lots of other new mothers and busy women in general reach their goals in 2017.

Thanks for reading,

Bríd

As the New Year looms and the excess of Christmas starts to set it many of us are thinking of ways to improve ourselves and our lives in the coming year. Whether it’s quitting an unhealthy habit like smoking or starting a new one like exercising there are certain things you can do to help break or make a habit that lasts. I gave up drinking in 2015 and here are some of my top tips:

Get Rid

This might sound obvious but if you are trying to break a habit then get whatever it is you are trying to quit out of the house. Completely. You might have to put up with protests from others in the house (particularly if you’re trying to get rid of junk food and the kids catch you!) but explain to them why you’re doing what you’re doing and how much you’d appreciate their help. This could be your chance to change everyone’s habits for the better.

Write It Down

Sit down and make a list of the reasons why you want to break a bad habit. It’s also helpful to ask yourself honest questions about why you think you developed your particular habit. What addition has it been to your life? Most likely none but it’s best not to ignore your fears about giving it up. For example many people believe that they won’t be able to relax without a cigarette or drink. If that’s you then dig deep and question how true your beliefs about your habit really are.

Put this list, as well as a little declaration about what you want to make or break, and stick them up somewhere that you have to pass every single day.

Treat Yourself

Often the habits we wish to break are those we consider to be a way of rewarding ourselves. If so then you should decide how you might do this in a healthier or more positive way. For example if you decide that you’re going to eat more healthily in 2016 but food was always your way of treating yourself then replace it with clothes, music, a beauty product etc that you’d like instead. Your new treat doesn’t have to be expensive but it does have to feel like a treat to you.

Support

Finding support when breaking a habit is so important. You may find that some of your friends are making similar decisions about their own habits for the New Year. If you’re going to get fit and your best friend wants to do also then why not pair up and keep each other motivated? But if you don’t have someone else in the same boat then you may need to look a bit further afield. That’s where the internet can help because there are chatrooms, message boards and private facebook groups for just about everything these days. Connect with people on the same journey as you and you may well find you make some new friends too.

Just Keep Swimming

Keep it up. Even when you don’t want to. Even when something happens that upsets you and all you want to do is run back to your habit that comforted you so well in the past. The feeling will pass eventually and when you’ve made it through and changed your default response you will feel really great about yourself. You will. I promise.

Good Luck!

Brídx

30th December 2015 by Bríd McGill | Comments Off on 5 Tips for Making or Breaking Habits in 2016

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